To save Earth from an alien probe, Admiral James T. Kirk and his fugitive crew go back in time to San Francisco in 1986 to retrieve the only beings who can communicate with it: humpback whales.
The most acclaimed Star Trek adventure of all time with an important message. It is the 23rd century, and a mysterious alien probe is threatening Earth by evaporating the oceans and destroying the atmosphere. In their frantic attempt to save mankind, Admiral Kirk and his crew must time travel back to 1986 San Francisco where they find a world of punk, pizza and exact-change buses that are as alien to them as anything they have ever encountered in the far-off reaches of the galaxy. William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy return as Kirk and Spock, along with the entire Star Trek crew.Written by
Robert Lynch <docrlynch@yahoo.com>
For the shot of Sulu flying the helicopter over San Francisco Bay, the filmmakers tried to get a pilot to fly a Huey, but they were unable to. The long shot was accomplished using a radio controlled model from Japan. See more »
Goofs
When asked if the glasses he is pawning are the gift Dr. McCoy gave him, Kirk responds that "they will be again," thus seemingly setting up an ontological paradox: Kirk is suggesting that the very same pair he is selling will be bought by McCoy, given to him in the future, and then sold again in the past. The glasses Kirk is selling are broken, however, so McCoy would have bought the intact pair. It would be an earlier version of the same glasses, but the broken pair would be bought by someone else, if at all. See more »
Quotes
Spock:
Are you sure it isn't time for a colorful metaphor?
See more »
Crazy Credits
The film opens with a dedication to the crew of the Space Shuttle Challenger. - European cinema versions contains a short summary of the two previous movies instead of dedication. See more »
Alternate Versions
The Australian and Germany release summaries mentioned above (they are the same) also included music unique to the prologue. This prologue has not been included on any North American DVD release of the film. See more »
This might be the most unusual Star Trek movie out there as the original Star Trek
prime regulars go back to 20th century San Francisco to get a pair of whales. It's
a matter of survival for the earth.
There's a real threat to the planet as a super race (maybe it's the Q continuum) that has sent a probe to the earth that is causing all kinds of climate change. And
they are sending out all kinds of sgnals causing massive flooding around the planet. They are sending out a signal to the humpbacked whales, the theory
being that if the whales respond the planet is being taken care of.
But in our time the whales were hunted to extinction or at least this species of.
So William Shatner and the gang go back to get some whales and save the
earth.
This is one wild and far out story, but it's compelling and draws you in. Best
scenes are Leonard Nimoy trying to fit into 20th century earth.
This film got 4 Oscar nominations in the technical categories. It's still enjoyable after over 30 years.
5 of 5 people found this review helpful.
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This might be the most unusual Star Trek movie out there as the original Star Trek prime regulars go back to 20th century San Francisco to get a pair of whales. It's a matter of survival for the earth.
There's a real threat to the planet as a super race (maybe it's the Q continuum) that has sent a probe to the earth that is causing all kinds of climate change. And they are sending out all kinds of sgnals causing massive flooding around the planet. They are sending out a signal to the humpbacked whales, the theory being that if the whales respond the planet is being taken care of.
But in our time the whales were hunted to extinction or at least this species of. So William Shatner and the gang go back to get some whales and save the earth.
This is one wild and far out story, but it's compelling and draws you in. Best scenes are Leonard Nimoy trying to fit into 20th century earth.
This film got 4 Oscar nominations in the technical categories. It's still enjoyable after over 30 years.